Unforeseen Circumstances
by LittleKitten
Summary: O'Neill and Carter must go undercover to arrest a Goa'uld living on Earth. (Warning: Sam/Jack romance)
1. Part 1

Unforeseen Circumstances  
by LittleKitten  
  
~ * ~  
  
  
Captain Samantha Carter, complete with a wry smile passing over her face, tried to stuff a rather expensive piece of lab equipment into a rather small box. Oh well, it probably wouldn't be needed again; like most of the expensive pieces of equipment that the SGC swallowed up, it had been used once for an obscure purpose and was about to be taken to a store cupboard, to join the other long forgotten about things.  
  
At least this one wasn't broken. Yet. Like all the other pieces of equipment she asked to be retrieved, this one would probably somehow magically get broken between now and the next time she might need it.  
  
Slowly coiling the many wires it contained and stuffing them into the box, she heard something be picked up off her workspace and mentally prayed for it not to be broken or missing when she turned around.  
  
No wonder it cost so much to turn the lights on in the SGC, she thought. They probably had to replace all the cables that had become magically broken since the last time they had been on.  
  
But this wasn't the reason her face wore a wry smile. The reason was sitting on a stool fiddling and breaking things as usual.  
  
Finishing her task, she closed the box and put it next to the other equipment that was to be sent into storage.  
  
"Whatever you've got, please put it down Sir."   
  
She heard a soft 'clunk' as it was. Turning around and sitting down on another stool facing him, she saw him watching her. After pulling a confused expression, she started to speak again. "What are you doing here, anyway?"  
  
"I'm bored." He stated simply.  
  
"And I'm entertainment?"  
  
He shrugged gently, and reached out to pick something else up; only to be stopped by a stare and a hand swatting his away.  
  
"Why don't you go home then?" She asked.  
  
"It's even more boring there."  
  
"Well you're just going to have to put up with it for another four weeks." She stood up to tidy some more things away. She needed something to do, not just sit and look at Colonel O'Neill.  
  
This two-month downtime was getting to her too, but she refused to show it. The team couldn't go on any new missions until Daniel had recovered from his badly broken arm. There were a few planets they could visit, but all contained new races or civilisations; which, of course, they would need Daniel for.  
  
Sure, they had tried to work with a new member temporarily; but it had only been a matter of days before they had had enough and went to General Hammond requesting transfer.  
  
The following week, they had managed to get through all the paperwork the General could find for them; and short of begging him for more, they had nothing to do. Sam had taken the opportunity to live in her lab and examine alien artefacts and the like, of which there seemed to be a never-ending supply of. O'Neill, however, had nothing to do on base short of throwing pencils at a wall - which Carter had once caught him doing. He had even tidied his whole house, but with six weeks to go, he still had nothing to do.  
  
That was when he had started hanging around Carter's lab. In between showing Teal'c Earth, checking that Daniel was okay (well, as okay as you could be with a broken arm reading mountains of, in O'Neill's opinion, very uninteresting books about very uninteresting rocks and cultures), and boxing with anyone he could find (which was usually Teal'c); he would sit bang in the middle of her lab, usually when she was in the middle of an experiment. Then he would ask questions about the complicated things she was doing...and then there was the fiddling and breaking of most things in the lab. The only thing he hadn't broken, she though, was her pot of flowers. Almost everything else on her 'desk' had magically split itself into many pieces and then jumped on the floor or into the bin.  
  
For once, she was actually getting sick of her work in the lab.  
  
"Hey, Carter."  
  
"Yeah?" She stopped pointlessly rearranging the few things left on her desk and sat down on the stool again.  
  
"It's getting late."   
  
She looked confused then at her watch. "It's only half seven."   
  
He smiled. Most people would consider ten past five overtime. Her seven a.m. to God-knows-what would probably seem like torture to them.  
  
"Do you want to get a steak with Teal'c and I?" He asked, and watched her think. She looked cute when she was thinking. Not that he'd ever tell her that. He'd probably get knocked out by her if he did.  
  
"Hmm..."  
  
"Come on, I'm paying," he taunted, and one of her eyebrows rose. "Free food, good company." She laughed. "So waddya say?"  
  
"Okay then."  
  
"Great." He jumped off his stool.  
  
"Wh-" She was cut off by a crackling sound.  
  
"SG1 and 2, please report to the briefing room ASAP." General Hammond's voice spoke on the intercom only usually used for emergencies.   
  
O'Neill looked at Carter.   
  
She shrugged back.  
  
"Damn!" He cursed quietly, and they both made their way to the briefing room.  
  
  
  
Teal'c - as they had guessed - was already there, as were two members of SG-2, General Hammond and a man and a woman with visitors' badges. The blast doors were open.   
  
That was unusual, Jack thought.  
  
Sliding into two seats next to each other, the General's voice broke the silence; pausing as the remainder of SG-2 came through the door, shutting it behind them.  
  
"We're just waiting for Dr. Jackson. He'll be here in a few minutes." He finished, and O'Neill looked across the table to Teal'c; who just raised his eyebrows in a way that Jack took to mean a shrug.  
  
True to form, Daniel came skidding through the door with his arm in a sling, out of breath, and apologetic. Hammond had sent someone to pick him up; he couldn't drive at the moment. Just before running into the room he has made a silent prayer that Janet wasn't in it. She would have murdered him. "So...sorry." He said yet again, and sat down next to Carter.  
  
"You shouldn't be running around," Hammond said before starting the briefing. "I'd like to introduce you to Agents Smith," the woman nodded before Hammond continued. "And Coomber." The man nodded.   
  
The rest of the people round the briefing room table still looked a bit mystified as to why two ordinary people, albeit FBI agents, as they had now discovered, were in the SGC and able to see the Stargate through the window.  
  
The General paused in an annoyingly dramatic way, and handed round several photographs. "John Peterson. You're average successful businessman."   
  
O'Neill turned the photo sideways as if he was contemplating it. Carter hid a smile.  
  
"What's so bad about him then?" She asked.  
  
"He's a Goa'uld." Hammond stated. Their eyes widened. A Goa'uld, here on Earth? The one place they thought they were safe? They turned their attention as Agent Smith started to speak.  
  
"Over the past two years we've been keeping track of him. We had received reports of a serial killer with eyes that glowed, and we thought it was a joke. Then one of our agents was killed." She handed round some more photos.   
  
"He has several houses; mainly lives in New York but has connections to Europe. We believe he has changed 'host' recently, and is now posing as a businessman to get what he wants. After our agent was killed we had the proof we needed and went to arrest him. We failed to realise his strength, and the two undercover agents couldn't keep him until backup arrived. Our next attempt two months later was unsuccessful when Peterson saw one of the agents talking into a hidden earpiece and fled. That was a year ago, and we haven't tried since. At present he is on business in Florida." She stopped speaking so that her partner could talk.  
  
"We want you to try. From what we've heard, you've dealt with this kind of thing before, and know how to act." He said.  
  
Hammond looked around the shocked faces of his two leading SG teams. He could almost read their thoughts. Earth wasn't safe. Their friends and families.  
  
"I've agreed to send a team of you to Florida." Hammond said finally. "Two of you will pose as a couple of tourists. Captain Carter, we believe that your experience with the Tok'ra, Jolinar, would be of some help in this case."   
  
Sam winced at the memory of events a few months previously before nodding her head.  
  
The name of the other person remained unsaid.   
  
At least seven pairs of eyes focused on the same point in the room.  
  
Jack O'Neill's head audibly thudded the tabletop as it joined his arms in his customary 'Ah, crap.' position. He groaned softly. Daniel tried and failed to hide a snigger.  
  
"Colonel." General Hammond called, making him sit up again.  
  
"Sir?"  
  
"SG-2 are the backup for the arrest. Daniel can't move anywhere fast, and Teal'c would be too..." he searched for the right word to use. "Well, obvious."  
  
"I'll do it."  
  
"Good. I thought I was going to have to make it an order," Hammond stood up. "Colonel O'Neill, Captain Carter; Agent Smith will give you more information and the things you will need. SG-2, Dr. Jackson, Teal'c; Agent Coomber will brief you about your roles. Dismissed." 


	2. Part 2

Sam Carter felt strangely happy about the nearing mission. Dinner was in the oven, her suitcase and bag lay half packed on her bed, and her cordless phone was glued to her ear by her shoulder. It was answered after five rings, as it always was.  
  
"Hello?"  
  
"Hey Mark, it's me."  
  
"Sam! How are you?"  
  
"I'm fine - sorry, I hope I haven't caught you at a bad time, but I won't be at home on Thursday," she explained. Ever since Mark had fallen out with their father, the regular Thursday night phone calls were the only contact they had.  
  
"Okay, just hang on a minute," he put the phone to rest on the table, and Sam heard some banging around nearby. "Back now. Just had to put the kids dinner in the oven."  
  
"How are they?"  
  
"Getting bigger by the day. You should come and see them sometime. Bring those friends you work with, and that Colonel of yours Janet was telling me about." Sam's eyes widened and she resolved to kill that woman next time she saw her. Which unfortunately wouldn't be until after the undercover mission they were doing.  
  
"Meet him, or beat him up?" she questioned, smiling softly despite herself.  
  
"Anyway," he changed the subject. "To what do I owe the pleasure of this phone call? Usually you apologise afterwards."  
  
"It's not my fault! Just that sometimes we have to stay where we are longer than expected. I'm going to Florida."  
  
"Nice! With who?"  
  
"Colonel O'Neill." she decided to tease her brother a bit.  
  
"So not only do you work with him, you socialise with him too and now you're going on holiday with him?" Sam stopped half way through stuffing her clothes into her suitcase in a messy but organised way. Well, that's what she classed it as.  
  
"No, it's a military thing. I can't tell you because it's classified."  
  
"You always say that!"  
  
"I know." she said in a teasing way, and resumed stuffing underwear into the small gaps left in her suitcase.  
  
"So, have you heard from dad recently?" Mark asked. Although he refused to speak to his father, it didn't mean he didn't care about him.  
  
"He's...okay," Sam faltered. It was only a few months ago that he had told her he had cancer, and then had taken his second chance at life and joined the Tok'ra. "He had cancer." she admitted finally.  
  
"What! Why didn't he tell me?"  
  
"He wouldn't even tell me about it until it was almost too late. But he's okay now."  
  
"Where is he?"  
  
"I don't know." Sam lied. Well, it might not be a lie if he was on a mission somewhere...  
  
"Next you're going to be telling me that aliens abducted him," Mark was still annoyed that neither his sister nor his father had told him about the cancer. "Are you sure he won't get a relapse?"  
  
"Yeah, I'm sure," Sam breathed a sigh of relief. "Listen, I have to go now."   
  
She said her goodbyes, and briefly talked to his children before returning the phone to its holder. The flight left at 7am the next morning and she had loads to do before then. While eating her slightly overcooked dinner, she made a mental checklist of everything she needed.  
  
Agent Smith had given them all the papers and warrants they needed to get through various security facilities if need be. All the case notes were on the laptop that was in her hand luggage so that they could look at it in more detail on the plane. She had several weapons, including spare rounds and a Zat gun, and the all-important cell phone that they would be using instead of hidden microphones. Daniel would be controlling the others, and the number to reach him was entered into the phone so that within a few button clicks they could be in contact with him; so they could call for backup.  
  
The rest of her hand luggage was made up of her CD player, CDs (most of which Cassie had burned from her new computer) and several maps and things. Amazingly it all fitted into one bag.   
  
Now, the tricky part would be to get it through the airport with minimum fuss. They couldn't use the military airports in case the man had 'friends' or spies. It was the way the FBI-agents had tried, and she was determined not to end up the same way as them.  
  
Injured, or six feet under.  
  
  
  
Jack O'Neill looked up at the information screen, scarcely trying to cover up a yawn.  
  
"Late night, sir?" He turned around to see his second-in-command return with two paper cups of coffee and some form of food that he didn't even want to know about.  
  
"Wouldn't you like to know..." He replied in the same cheeky tone she seemed to have been stuck in all morning. She gave him one of the cups before turning her attention to her breakfast.  
  
"Mmmm..."  
  
"You know that looks disgusting." He put his elbows on his knees, and caught an evil glare coming from her direction.  
  
"Want some?" She smiled softly.  
  
"They do feed you on the plane." They sat in silence for a few minutes.  
  
"Oh, did you check what gate it was?"  
  
"14," he looked at his watch. "At 6:45. We should probably go over there soon." He watched as she aimed her empty coffee cup at the nearby bin, and it sailed in.  
  
"Ha!"  
  
"You need to get out more, Carter." O'Neill retorted.  
  
"Why thank you for that compliment, sir."  
  
"And you'd better drop the 'sir' thing before we get there."  
  
"Yes sir." She grinned as they walked off.  
  
  
  
O'Neill could faintly hear the two air hostesses working their way down the aisles handing out breakfast and drinks. Carter had set up the laptop over their two trays, as they had asked for the seats at the back of the plane where they could read the information in silence without the risk of people behind them reading it too.   
  
She had also set it up turned slightly towards the window seat, which he was sitting in, to add extra security from nosey people walking up and down the aisle. That had meant she had to crane her neck to read what was on the screen.   
  
He couldn't remember when, but she had given up some time ago and rested her head on his shoulders, and he hadn't said anything about it.  
  
Glancing over, he could see that her eyes were closed, and he smiled despite the circumstances. He should probably be minding this, but he didn't.  
  
"Carter." He spoke softly. When she didn't respond, he moved his shoulder slightly.  
  
"Huh?" She sat up properly.  
  
"I thought I was the tired one." He quipped, as the air hostess passed them. O'Neill shook his head, and Carter ordered a coffee.  
  
"Thanks." She nodded as it was handed to her, and the air hostess conferred with her friend working on the other side before walking back to the front.  
  
"Have we finished with this?" He motioned towards the laptop. Carter drained the last of her coffee with a small slurp and a smile.  
  
"I think we know everything there is to know." She clicked it shut and put it back into her now even more over packed bag, and pulled out her CD player and headphones. They had had to repack in the airline manager's office, as he wasn't happy about them taking weapons on board with them, especially after asking what the Zat gun could do to you. And that was the kind version - they hadn't told him it could disintegrate with the third shot.  
  
Instead, they had had to shuffle everything around and hand O'Neill's bag over to be secured and put in a 'safe place' until they got to the other end. She had made sure that they had phoned the other airport so that they could leave relatively quickly once they got there.  
  
With her music on quiet, she could still hear what was going on around her, and that O'Neill was speaking to her.  
  
"You've got foam around your mouth."  
  
"Thanks." She replied, before trying to lick it off with her tongue.  
  
"You missed a bit." He added, smiling, when she had finished.  
  
"Where?!" She tried to find it with her tongue again. O'Neill reached over and ran a thumb over her top lip before bringing his thumb back to his mouth and slowly licking it. Then he suddenly broke eye contact and stared out the window.  
  
Sam waited until she was sure he wasn't looking before running her fingers over where he had touched in surprise. Letting her hand fall back to her lap, she punched the volume button on her CD player up a few notches, and sat back to think. Why was he acting so strange all of a sudden?  
  
She closed her eyes and sighed, waiting for the remaining hour of the flight to pass. 


	3. Part 3

"Hello?" came the voice from the other end of the cell phone.  
  
"Hey, Daniel. We've arrived."  
  
"Have you got your bags back?"  
  
"Colonel O'Neill is getting them now."  
  
"Peterson's gone." Daniel sounded deflated.  
  
"What! When?"  
  
"This morning. He left for Europe." Daniel replied as Sam sat down on one of the airport chairs.  
  
"What are we supposed to do now then?"  
  
"Follow him. He's only going to be there a few days before moving on. We think he's planning something."  
  
"How are we all going to get there?"  
  
"We pulled a few strings at the airport. You and Jack have to be there first, and locate him. We'll follow on another plane tonight."  
  
"When are we going then?"  
  
"The plane leaves in two hours. Ask to see the manager, he knows who you are and will get you on. He's also got a sealed envelope with hotel details etcetera for when you get there. Also, get some sleep on the plane, as you won't have time to get used to the time difference."  
  
"What's the flight number?"  
  
"I can't remember offhand. Go to the Concorde check-in and ask to see the manager."  
  
"Concorde?!"  
  
"I told you we pulled some strings, didn't I?" Daniel laughed softly.  
  
"Sweet." She smiled to herself.  
  
"You should probably go now."  
  
"Okay, speak to you soon."  
  
"Bye." She heard Daniel say, before handing up. Looking round, she saw O'Neill looking for her, and took her bag off him.  
  
"Follow me, I'll explain on the way." She could hardly keep the smile off her face.  
  
  
  
"Have you ever been here before?" Carter looked up from where she was sitting on her suitcase trying to find the envelope with their instructions in.  
  
"France?" He questioned.  
  
"Paris."  
  
"No, have you?"  
  
"Not Paris. But I can speak French."  
  
"But we'll still probably end up hopelessly lost." He sat down on his suitcase as she opened the envelope up. "Especially if Daniel or Teal'c wrote the instructions."  
  
"You have such faith in your team." She gave him a smile before turning back to read quickly over the information.  
  
"Where to next, then." He leaned over and put his chin over her shoulder. Or rather on her shoulder. Smiling softly to herself, Sam turned the papers back to the front page.  
  
"We need to get a train to a town further south."  
  
"How long is that going to take?"  
  
"Only a few hours. It's one of those high-speed TGV trains. Then we get a taxi to this address," she pointed to it on the paper. "Which is the hotel that he's staying in. So are we."  
  
"Sweet." O'Neill remarked before Sam reached into the envelope again and pulled out some wads of cash, keeping hit hidden well.  
  
"Hundred euro notes, and fifty euro notes." She turned her head to look at him, and he raised his eyebrows.  
  
"How much is there?"  
  
"A lot." She handed him the hundreds and put the fifties in her bag.  
  
"So. Where do we get the TGV from?" O'Neill asked as they stood up. Carter lifted her shoulders in an exaggerated shrug as they walked off, dragging their suitcases behind them.  
  
  
  
Having slept on the plane and on the TGV, Carter felt surprisingly awake as they stood at the reception desk in the large foyer of the hotel; even as she was trying to remember her French and the name that the others had booked them as.  
  
As she was given the key, someone came over and talked quickly in French with the woman on the reception desk, before picking up both of their suitcases and walking over to the elevator while they followed.  
  
"This guy has a good taste in hotels, I'll give you that." O'Neill commented.  
  
"Thank God I'm not paying." She replied as they walked into the elevator and went up several floors in silence.  
  
After locating their room, the man took their key from them and put the suitcases just inside the door before nodding his head and disappearing quickly. When he had gone, Carter double locked the door.  
  
"You want the bed by the window?" O'Neill asked.  
  
"I don't mind," she replied, before moving her bags over to it. "This room is huge!"  
  
She looked around her, past the two large, comfortable looking beds to the white-curtained window which was slightly open and overlooking a large green park and lake. She then walked around and looked at the storage space, and then into the bathroom.  
  
"I could get used to this." Sam heard from behind her, and smiled. So could she...  
  
"Are we going to unpack now, or later?" She broke the silence.  
  
"Now, and then we need to go and locate Peterson like Daniel told you on the phone." He replied, and they walked back into the main part of the room. 


	4. Part 4

O'Neill banged on the door to the bathroom. After unpacking, they had decided to wash before leaving the hotel again.  
  
"I'll be out in a minute."  
  
"What's talking you so long?" He sighed.  
  
"I'm shaving my legs." She replied simply.  
  
"I didn't need that information, Carter." He heard her laugh softly from the bathroom.  
  
"Okay, you can have the bathroom now." Sam unlocked the door and he got up.  
  
"Thank you!" He retorted in a semi-sarcastic tone. She was wrapped in a large, fluffy white towel, and her hair was still wet. He unconsciously let his eyes travel her body as she walked past him through the doorway, and watched her walk over to the bed before shutting the door and turning the lock.  
  
  
  
When he reappeared, he saw her dividing things into piles to go inside their bags. His rucksack had been packed with spare weapons and rounds, and she had most of the papers, money and everything else in her smaller shoulder bag.  
  
"I've packed th-" Sam turned to face him and turned quickly away. Seeing Colonel O'Neill on a daily basis was bad enough, but seeing him half naked - no, with just a towel wrapped round his waist - was just going to fuel her...unprofessional thoughts. Mentally she slapped herself on the wrists. "Couldn't you have gotten changed in there?"  
  
"Couldn't you!?"  
  
"Well you wanted the bathroom!" She retorted, sitting down hard on one of the chairs near the window.  
  
"Carter?" He spoke softly after a few moments. She could hear his light footsteps behind her, but wouldn't let herself turn around to look at him.  
  
Reaching over, he put a hand on her shoulder to make her look up at him. Her eyes didn't show the anger he was expecting, but sadness.  
  
"I'm sorry, sir. That was disrespectful-"  
  
"No, Carter. They shouldn't have put us in this situation." He let his hand drop from her shoulder.  
  
"Just get dressed before I do something stupid." She said wryly, and pulled her knees to her chest to rest her chin on; and gazed out of the window.  
  
  
  
"Are you decent?"  
  
"Well, that's a matter of opinion..." He quipped as he walked over to her bed to pick up his rucksack.  
  
"Oh," Sam got up. "Catch." She threw a small, unloaded gun towards him, and put another in her bag.  
  
"Are we going then?"  
  
"Yeah, I need to get some sun cream though or I'll look like a tomato. I can't find mine anywhere." They moved towards the door.  
  
"Could you *be* wearing any less clothes?" He added as she turned the key. Sam looked down at what she was wearing; a strappy top and some denim shorts. Well, maybe they *were* a bit on the short side, but still - she wanted a tan!  
  
As they walked towards the elevator, she felt his hand placed gently, and cautiously at the small of her back, and she smiled softly to herself.  
  
  
  
Rubbing the last of the sun cream into her face, she put her sunglasses back on. They provided useful cover for looking out for Peterson, but also, she had discovered, meant that she could look at O'Neill without him catching her very often. Not that she did, of course...  
  
Moving the straps of her top across, she saw O'Neill glancing at her.  
  
"Do you want me to put sun cream on your back?" Okay, maybe that wasn't such a good idea.  
  
"Thanks." She moved closer to him and passed him the bottle, and they sat in silence for a few minutes.  
  
"I wish you could do this more often." Sam leant into his touch as he massaged the sun block into her skin.  
  
"So do I..." he muttered quietly.  
  
"What?" She looked at him.  
  
"Nothing." Sam turned away again as he continued to rub her shoulders.  
  
"So...what's this Daniel said about you shedding a tear when I was dying because of Jolinar?" O'Neill stopped the movement of his hands and flinched.  
  
"I've finished with the sun cream now." He changed the subject, and Sam heard the lid clip back on the bottle.  
  
"Keep going, it's nice." she mock-moaned, and he brought his fingers back up closer to her neck as she continued to look out for Peterson. They hadn't seen him at the hotel, but he would probably be going to one of the open-air café's for lunch. From their spot at the trunk of a large tree, they had a view of most of the restaurants surrounding the park.  
  
"Would it be wrong of me to say I'm enjoying this more than I should be?" O'Neill's voice cut through her musings.  
  
"I was keeping that thought to myself." she smiled back at him.   
  
A large group of teenagers walked passed them, followed by a man in a suit and sunglasses.  
  
"Sir?" She nodded in the direction of the man, who was now looking at the menu outside one of the restaurants.  
  
"That's him," he confirmed. The man had now sat down at one of the small tables outside. "We should wait for a few more minutes, and then go and have a drink over there."   
  
They stood up and walked slowly over to one of the nearest café's, and looked at the menu before working their way round to the correct one. Out of the corner of her eye, Sam could see that he now had a companion who was smoking a cigar.  
  
After looking at the menu, they walked in and sat a few tables away from the pair, where they could hear the conversation faintly. It appeared that they had almost finished their drinks and were getting ready to leave. Sam could make out the sound of fabricated laughter, and that the other guy was going to pay the bill.  
  
"I'll see you tomorrow at two O'clock then." Peterson stood up.  
  
"Here?" The other guy clarified.  
  
"Yes." He walked off, and in the direction of the hotel.  
  
  
  
The air temperature had dropped dramatically as O'Neill and Carter walked slowly back to the hotel, the long way around the park.  
  
"So, there's nothing we can do until they meet tomorrow?" Sam spoke into the phone to Daniel, who was now in the country with the others.  
  
"No. Call me just before you get there, and the backup will be there. When I walk past the restaurant, that's the signal to let you know that everything's in place and you can arrest him any time after that."  
  
"Okay. Bye," she hung up the call on the mobile and slid it back into her pocket. "I'll tell you back at the hotel." She looked at O'Neill, who nodded.  
  
As they walked off, he slid an arm around her waist and they continued slowly.  
  
"Are we going to eat at the hotel?"  
  
"The restaurant looked nice." He replied.  
  
"Yeah..." Sam trailed off. "Do you think the alternative reality was trying to tell us something?" She asked, and they stopped walking and turned to face each other.  
  
"What?"  
  
"We were engaged to be married."  
  
"You never joined the military."  
  
"Hmmm." Sam looked up at him briefly before they continued walking in silence along the dark path.  
  
"Your hand's migrating." She said after a while.  
  
"Sorry."  
  
"It's okay." 


	5. Part 5

She gritted her teeth hard as the hand device was brought to her head once again. For days now they had been trying to get the information out of her by various methods of torture; she had cuts and bruises all over her body to prove that.  
  
She screamed out in pain as someone kicked her in the side, her broken ribs hadn't had time to heal. The intensity of the hand device increased, and she couldn't even make out what was being asked any more.  
  
Blinded, she clung to her only positive thoughts.  
  
'They're coming. They have to be.'...  
  
~ * ~  
  
Sam sat up gasping for air, her face contorted in pain.  
  
"Carter?" He was next to her.  
  
"Jolinar...it was her...she was tortured." Her breathing was still rough as he moved closer and embraced her.  
  
"Try not to think about it."  
  
"I could feel the pain...what she went through was horrible." Sam broke down, unable to help it.  
  
"No-one should have been through what you went through, Carter." He gently rocked her while she calmed down. "Are you okay now?" O'Neill questioned, and started to untangle himself from her. She sniffed quietly.  
  
"Don't go yet." She rested her head on his chest and he looked down at her; the bluish moonlight reflecting off her skin, and she gave him a small smile.  
  
He couldn't help thinking that it was wrong, why he couldn't stop thinking about her. She was his 2IC for crying out loud. It was against regulations.  
  
His mind cleared and he moved away from her, back to his own bed. When he looked over, he was met with her blank stare; and he turned over to face the wall, unable to shake the feeling of guilt, but unable to comfort her more.  
  
  
  
When Jack came out of the bathroom, Sam was sitting cross-legged on her bed with paper spread out around her and the cell phone in her hand. The map in front of her now had things written on it.  
  
"Hey. Just been on the phone to Daniel. He gave me more information and what direction the backup will be coming from." She passed him the newly annotated map.  
  
"If it goes to plan." He sat down on her bed.  
  
"How are we going to go about it?" she asked.  
  
"He's stronger than us; they always are. But I don't really want to have to use weapons in a public place unless it's really necessary."  
  
"Do you think he'll have any weapons?"  
  
"It's more than likely." He sighed, and they sat in silence for a few minutes.  
  
"Well, we've got over two hours to go," she said, glancing up at the clock on the wall ahead of them. "Do you want to go to the park and look out for him there?"  
  
"And think of a plan."  
  
  
  
They had just ordered drinks when Daniel walked past a distance away. Peterson - and the guy he had arranged to meet - had been there for a while, and had been eating when O'Neill last looked in that direction.  
  
Hearing a chair scraping from the table, O'Neill saw that the other guy had got up and was heading into the restaurant.  
  
He felt apprehensive about what was going to happen as he nodded to Carter. When she had though up her plan just before they had left the hotel room, he had been a bit concerned for her safety.   
  
When he had tied one of his baggy sweaters around her waist to conceal the gun she had tucked into her shorts, he had become more worried. She had sensed it and got a bit annoyed, and she was still adamant that it would work out.  
  
He watched her out of the corner of his eye as she walked away from him.  
  
  
  
"Hi," she smiled as Peterson turned to look at her. Before she had a chance to say anything more, the other guy returned with a slightly puzzled look. "Can I talk to you please?" she asked, and waited while he looked her up and down.   
  
Sam didn't know if he was looking for anything that would give her away, or if he was just checking her out, though it seemed to be edging towards the latter. Either way, she seemed to pass and he stood up and directed her away from the table to a shaded area a short distance from the restaurant.  
  
"What do you want?" he asked casually.  
  
"I know what you are. And I know what you've been doing." She spoke clearly. His mouth opened to reply, but before he did his eyes flashed and he reached for something; so she pulled her gun on him. Over his shoulder, she could see the others coming towards them.   
  
Seeing her gun, Peterson revealed what it was he had pulled out.  
  
O'Neill's eyes widened as he saw the guy take out a knife, and he increased his pace. Seeing that he wouldn't get there in time, he aimed it at Peterson's upper leg and fired as he reached the two of them. The guy doubled up in pain, and his eyes flashed again.  
  
He could see out of the corner of his eye that Carter had been injured, but had to wait a few more seconds before SG-2 and the FBI team made it across.  
  
"Don't worry. He'll live." he spat as he ran over to where Carter was now lying on the floor, a pool of bright red blood spreading rapidly over her clothes and the floor. She was still conscious.  
  
"Shit!" he knelt down beside her, calling for someone to get an ambulance, and used his hands to put pressure on the large wound on her right forearm; elevating it above her body in an attempt to stop the blood pouring out.   
  
Looking at her face, he could see she had gone pale and her eyes were beginning to close.  
  
"Don't die on me Carter, that's an order." He saw her try to fight for a few moments longer, before unconsciousness claimed her.  
  
Faintly, Jack could hear Daniel trying to keep people away and the ambulance drawing closer; as her breathing became shallower, and the blood soaked his clothes, the salty sting of tears pricked the back of his eyes.  
  
  
  
The steady bleeping of a cardiac monitor penetrated the haze. She tried to open her eyes and was surprised to find the pain in her head lessening slightly already.  
  
The pain shooting up her right arm was enough to stop her moving it; so she used her left hand, which had several lines in it, to pull the oxygen mask off her mouth.  
  
"Hey, Carter." She saw Colonel O'Neill sitting in a chair beside her bed, a smile passing across his face.  
  
"What...happened?" she tried to say, her mouth too dry.  
  
"You lost too much blood, and I think you were also hit over the head. You've been unconscious for two days. I'm sorry, I didn't react quickly enough. When I saw-"  
  
"You couldn't have done anything," she cut in. "I knew the risks of my plan."  
  
"They had to operate on your arm."  
  
"How bad is it?"  
  
"They're expecting it to heal fully." Sam breathed a sigh of relief, and lay for a few minutes just looking at him.  
  
"You...saved my life." She spoke slowly,  
  
"Well who would I annoy if you weren't around, hey?" He smiled slightly.  
  
  
  
"Daniel said the next available flight was on Monday afternoon, and they've booked us on it." Jack came back and sat on the bed next to her.  
  
"We've got three days here then."  
  
The others had flown back while she was still in hospital. They had kept her in for a total of eight days before she threatened to walk out on her own if they didn't let her go. The hospital was happy that the stitches could be taken out at the SGC, and had let her leave with an assortment of drugs.  
  
"How's your arm?" he asked, and she picked up the remote control and changed the channel on the TV to show him that it was okay, though it still hurt her.  
  
Standing up, she walked over to the window and opened it to take in the cool air and the uplifting music that was being played somewhere nearby.  
  
"Do you want to go out for dinner tonight?" she asked, swaying her hips gently to the music.  
  
"Sure." he joined her at the window, putting his hands on her shoulders and starting to massage them.  
  
"Thanks." she shot him a smile over her shoulder.  
  
"Carter?" he broke the peaceful silence that had surrounded them for a few minutes.  
  
"Yeah?" she replied, and he removed his hands from her shoulders.  
  
"It doesn't matter," Sam turned around to face him, and he carried on. "It's just that this situation, and what happened to you. It just made me realise things..." He was cut off when she reached up with her good arm, pulling his mouth down to hers to kiss him gently.  
  
"Mmm..." he moaned in protest as she pulled away.  
  
She opened her mouth to speak, and he put a finger on her lips to silence her.  
  
"*Don't* apologise for that." he said quietly.  
  
"It was to shut you up." Sam slid her arms carefully over his shoulders, wary of the strapped up one.  
  
"It was?"  
  
"Uh-huh." she smiled as he ran his hands down her back to her hips and pulled her body closer to his as they kissed again.  
  
  
  
Sam smiled as they slowly walked to the elevator. This time it was her that had her hand in the back pocket of his jeans.  
  
She wondered what her dad would do when he found out. Hopefully Selmak would prevent him from shooting her or Jack.  
  
Yes, she definitely had a lot to tell Janet and Mark when she got back.  
  
Definitely.  
  
  
  
  
fin  
  



End file.
